Together Again

Chapter 23

After hours of relentless searching, countless phone calls, and visiting every place Eda could possibly be, his body demanded rest. It had been a day full of frustration and fear, his thoughts spiraling deeper into uncertainty. But no matter how hard he tried, sleep never came easily. His mind was too busy, too anxious. The feeling that something was terribly wrong gnawed at him.

Around 3 AM, after another round of failed attempts to find Eda, his body finally gave way. He collapsed onto his bed, too tired to move, barely noticing the familiar scent of Eda's perfume lingering in the air. He let out a long breath and closed his eyes, hoping to get a few hours of sleep before the hunt resumed the next day.

But sleep wasn’t as easy as it used to be.

The night stretched on in silence, broken only by the occasional rustle of the wind outside. What Serkan didn’t hear was the subtle sound of a window being cracked open, the slight movement of a figure slipping into his room unnoticed.

Selin had been waiting for this moment. She knew the city, knew the places Serkan frequented, and knew him too well. Her plan was meticulous—if she couldn’t break Eda, she’d break Serkan. She wanted him to feel betrayed, to doubt everything, to lose trust in the person who had given him hope. And in this moment of vulnerability, she saw the perfect opportunity to make that happen.

Serkan had no idea what was coming.

Selin had played it carefully—she knew Serkan would be too exhausted to think clearly, and that if she could make him believe, even for a moment, that Eda had abandoned him, he would fall into her trap. Her mind raced with possibilities, calculating each move with precision. She'd studied the scents, the habits, the small, subtle things that would make him think Eda was with him.

She wore the same perfume Eda always used—the one Serkan loved. She’d gone through the motions of mimicking Eda’s appearance, doing her hair just right, even adjusting her makeup to match the familiar style Serkan adored. Her footsteps were light, almost inaudible, as she moved closer to him, her breath shallow with anticipation.

As she stood by his bed, she looked at him, still unaware of her presence. She thought about all the years of jealousy, of wanting everything that Eda had—Serkan, the life, the future. And now, she had him alone. A twisted part of her was satisfied, knowing that she was in control again, and that Eda wasn’t around to intervene.

Selin reached for the buttons of Serkan's shirt, her movements deliberate but careful, knowing that any misstep could wake him. Her heart pounded as she reminded herself to be patient. She knew it would be a psychological war—a way of planting doubt, of breaking him down from the inside out. She wasn’t here to destroy him physically. No, she wanted something deeper: the seeds of mistrust.

When Serkan woke up hours later, something was off. His head was foggy, his body exhausted as usual, but there was an overwhelming feeling of unease in the air. His eyes flickered open, and it took a few moments to realize that something wasn’t quite right. He immediately sensed the disarray in the room, as if a presence had been there.

But there was nothing tangible to point to. He glanced at his phone—it was early morning, the sun still not up. But the strange sensation lingered. Something felt... different.

Then, he noticed the scent in the air. The familiar fragrance that he associated with Eda—the one that lingered in the air whenever she was near. He stood up, still groggy, and as he walked toward the window, his eyes scanned the room. There were no signs of a break-in, no evidence of a struggle. But the unsettling thought lingered: Had Eda been here? Did she return, only to leave without a word?

But as he walked around the room, he realized something else. The window was slightly ajar, but it wasn’t wide open. A gust of wind could have easily caused it. Nothing about the scene felt like an intrusion—more like... an illusion.

He ran his fingers through his hair, trying to collect his thoughts. He was missing something, but what?

As the day wore on, Serkan couldn’t shake the feeling of unease. He spent most of it trying to focus on work, but his mind kept returning to that moment. Had Eda been there? If she had, why didn’t she wake him? Why didn’t she leave a message or a clue?

And why didn’t he remember anything?

It was all too convenient, too neatly arranged. His thoughts started to spiral, and in the haze of exhaustion, he began to question himself—was he just imagining things? Or had something far darker occurred? Had someone been in his room, and if so, who?

Meanwhile, in the silence of the flower shop, Eda tried to settle herself after the shock of being taken. Every conversation with Serkan had left her with a heavy heart. She had finally begun to rebuild, to live her life again. But the doubt still gnawed at her, especially when she thought about how Serkan had been acting lately. Something was off.

She tried to push the thoughts aside, focusing on the simple joy of arranging flowers, but the nagging feeling didn’t leave her. Was Serkan hiding something? Or worse, had something happened while she was away that he hadn’t told her?

Her worries were interrupted when she received a text from Serkan. His words were short, but the tone felt strained:

I need to talk to you. Can we meet later?

Eda’s pulse quickened, her heart skipping a beat. Was this about the strange feeling she had been sensing? The gap between them had been closing slowly, but something still wasn’t right. The memory of that night, of the window, of everything that had happened, seemed to haunt her.

She stared at her phone, unsure of how to respond. Part of her wanted to go to him, to reassure him that everything would be okay. But the other part—the part that feared the worst—was telling her to stay away.

What if Selin had done something, planted seeds of doubt in his mind? What if she was manipulating him from the shadows, making him believe something that wasn’t true?

Eda’s mind raced as she made her decision. She would meet Serkan, but she had to be careful. This wasn’t just about love anymore. It was about trust. And the deeper they went, the more she realized that someone—perhaps the very person who had caused their separation before—was trying to destroy everything they had fought to rebuild.

As the sun began to set, both Serkan and Eda were faced with the shadow of their past. And they both knew that Selin wasn’t done.